Rug hooking needle

ABSTRACT

The disclosure herein describes a rug hooking needle consisting of an elongated bar, a needle member fixed to a forward end of the bar, a shuttle member mounted for reciprocated movement on the bar, a looper member having one end attached to the shuttle member and the opposite end slidably received through the needle member, a presser member slidably mounted to the elongated bar and extending longitudinally thereof, and means for adjusting the relative position of the presser member to the bar and to the shuttle member. This adjustment of the presser memeber enables one to vary the distance between the fabric-contacting portion of the presser member and the fabric-penetrating portion of the looper member whereby the yarn penetration in the fabric is varied accordingly.

United States Patent Morissette RUG HOOKING NEEDLE [75] Inventor:Bernard Morissette, l-lyacinthe,

Quebec, Canada [73] Assignee: Phentex Inc., St. Hyacinthe,

Quebec, Canada [22] Filed: July 13, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 378,936

[52] US. Cl. 112/80 [51] int. Cl. D05c 15/06 [58] Field of Search112/80, 169; 223/102, 104.

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,477,430 12/1923 Creighton112/80 1,539,381 5/1925 Bassisty 112/80 1,941,346 12/1933 Garrett 112/801,958,556 5/1934 White 112/80 2,319,442 5/1943 Carlson 112/80 3,714,9152/1973 Montell et a1. 112/80 Primdry Examiner-Werner H. SchroederAttorney, Agent, or F irmCushman, Darby & Cushman [57] ABSTRACT Thedisclosure herein describes a rug hooking needle consisting of anelongated bar, a needle member fixed to a forward end of the bar, ashuttle member mounted for reciprocated movement on the bar, a loopermember having one end attached to the shuttle member and the oppositeend slidably received through the needle member, a presser member slid-7 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures 3,867,888 [451 Feb. 25, 1975 RUG HOOKINGNEEDLE FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to hooking needlesespecially adapted for working rugs or mats of the type having a base ofsuitable fabric through which a material is worked in the form of loops.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This type of hooking needles is well knownand may be found described, for example, in US. Pat. Nos. 1,605,711 and1,941,346 issued to J. E. Garrett, respectively on Nov. 2, 1926 and Dec.26, I933, and in a more recent U.S. Pat. No. 3,714,915 issued Feb. 6,1973 to J. .l. Montell et al.

In the hooking needles described in these patents, the variation of theyarn penetration in the fabric is accomplished by adjusting the relativeposition of the yarnpenetrating looper to the shuttle member. In thesehooking needles the presser member, which comes in contact with thefabric base, is integrally mounted to the shuttle member.

STATEMENT OF THE INVENTION It is an object of this invention to providea novel hooking needle for working rugs or mats where the variation ofthe yarn loops is accomplished by varying the position of the pressermember relative to the shuttle member.

The invention therefore relates to a hooking needle which comprises: anelongated bar having a handle attached at one end thereof; a needlemember fixed to the opposite forward end of the bar, the needle memberdefining an open-ended enclosure having a yarnrcceiving passage and alooper-receiving passage extending longitudinally therethrough, theneedle member including a fabric-penetrating portion frontwardlyextending in the longitudinal axis of the bar; a shuttle member mountedto the bar for reciprocating movement thereon between the handle and theneedle member; an elongated looper member having one end attached to theshuttle member and the opposite forward end slidably received in thelooper-receiving passage of the needle member; a presser member slidablymounted to the elongated bar and extending longitudi nally thereof, thepresser member having a forward portion adapted to rest against thefabric being hooked; and means for adjusting the relative position ofthe presser member to the bar and to the shuttle member to thereby varythe relative position of the forward end of the presser member to theforward end of the looper member whereby the yarn penetration in thefabric may be varied.

In one preferred form of the invention, the means for adjusting thepresser member consists of: a coupling member surrounding a portion ofthe presser member and a portion of the elongated bar, and releasablefastening means for fixing the coupling member to the said portion ofthe presser member.

In another preferred form of the invention the releasable fasteningmeans cooperate with the walls of an elongated slot providedlongitudinally in the elongated bar to limit the reciprocating movementof the shuttle member.

In another form of the invention, the needle member is permanently fixedto the elongated bar.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other objects, purposes andcharacteristic features of the present invention will be in part obviousfrom the accompanying drawings. and in part pointed out as thedescription of the invention progresses. In describing the invention indetail, reference will be made to the accompanying drawings, in which.like reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout theseveral views, and in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of an embodiment of a booking needleconstructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a bottom view, showing the means justing the presser member;

FIG. 3 is a plan view, showing in part the hooking needle illustrated inFIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 44 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 5-5 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 66 of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT In these drawings illustrating apreferred embodiment of the invention, there is shown a hooking needlegenerally designated by reference numeral 10. The needle comprises anelongated bar member 12 having at one end 12a thereof a handle 14, andat the other end 12b thereof a needle member 16. The needle 10 furtherincludes a shuttle member 20 mounted to the bar 12 for reciprocatingmovement thereon between the handle and the needle member. An elongatedlooper member 22 has one end 22a attached to the shuttle member 20 andthe other end 22b slidably received in the needle member 16.

for ad In accordance with the present invention, the needle 10 furtherincludes an adjustable presser member 24 which has one end 24a, receivedwithin the shuttle member 20 and suitably mounted to the bar 12, and afrontward end 24b which has a downwardly projection adapted to contactthe fabric base to be worked The bar 12 is an elongated member made ofrigid material, the rear end, 12a of which is fixedly received in acorrespondingly-shaped opening provided'in the handle 14. The front end12b of the bar has on each of its side edges a recess to receive thereinin a fixed manner, such as by welding, the lower ends of the side wallsof the needle member 16. The intermediate portion of the bar 12 includesan elongated slot 30, the function which will hereina fter be described.

The needle member 16 is an open-ended enclosure with opposite side walls32 and 34 to which is internally fixed an intermediate partition 36 (seeFIG. 6) defining in the enclosure an upper yarn-receiving passageway 38and a lower looper-receiving passageway 40. The needle member 16terminates with a pointed fabricpenetrating portion 42 projectingfrontwardly in the longitudinal direction of the bar 12.

Shuttle member 20 is a metal member which includes a short rear legportion 44 and along front leg portion 46 inter-connected by a webportion 48 extending over the bar 12. The short leg portion 44 has anaperture for slidably receiving the bar 12 therethrough. The leg portion46 includes an aperture 47 to slidably receive therethrough bar 12,presser member 24 and looper member 22 (see FIG. 5). The leg portion 46is sufficiently long to facilitate manual gripping thereof.

Looper member 22 is an elongated metal member, preferably constructed ofspring steel, and is resilient. its rear end 22a is fixed to the webportion 48 of the shuttle member by suitable fastener means, such asscrew 50. The front end 22b of the looper is slidably re ceived inpassageway 40 of the needle member 16.

An important feature of the present invention is that the presser member24 is made to be adjusted relative to the elongated bar 12 as well as tothe shuttle member 20. A coupling member 52, in the form of an elongatedU-shaped channel extending between the leg portions 44 and 46, surroundsthe end portion 24a of the presser member 24 and an intermediate portionof the bar 12. A releasable fastener, such as screw 54, threadedlyengages the end portion 24a of the presser and its shank portion end issufficiently long so that its threaded end may protrude presser 24 andbe received in slot 30 of the bar 12. Tightening screw 54 causescontacting engagement of a washer 58 with the inwardly projectingsurfaces 58 and 60 of the U-shaped coupling member 52 (see FIG. 4).Therefore, the adjustment of the distance between the fabric-contactingportion 24b ofthe presser member and the shuttle member consists inlossening fastener 54 to release the tight engagement between the washer56 and surfaces 58 and 60 of the coupling member and in manuallydisplacing the presser member 24 in the longitudinal plane of the bar.Once the adjustment is set, fastener 54 is tightened to form one movableunit that includes the shuttle member 20 (which also carries the loopermember 22), the presser member 24 and the coupling member 52.

The reciprocating movement of the shuttle member on the bar 12 may belimited by having the rear leg portion 44 contacting the handle 14 andthe front leg portion contacting the rear edges of the open-endedenclosure 16 or by having the treaded end of the fastener 54 contactingthe opposite extremities 30a and 30b of the slot 30.

OPERATION OF THE INVENTION First, the hooking needle is set for adesired loop length of material in the fabric base. This is accomplishedby adjusting the position of the fabriccontacting portion 24b of thepresser member relative to extremity 22c of the looper member 22; thegreater the distance separating portion 24b from extremity 22c, thelonger would be the loop of material formed in the fabric base since thepenetration of the looper member would be greater. Once this adjustmentis made, screw 54 is tightly fastened causing surfaces 58 and 60 ofcoupling member 52 to be squeezed between washer 56 and end 24a of thepresser thereby preventing further movement between the presser 24 andthe shuttle member 20 and allowing these members to move together duringthe reciprocating movements. Yarn is introduced in the yarmreceivingpassage 38 of the needle member 16. The needle member 16 is positionedvertically over the undersurface of a fabric base and the pointed end 42of the needle is forced through the fabric until the front edges of thesidewalls 32 and 34 of the open-ended enclosure. Then, shuttle member 20is downwardly pushed thusengaging the yarn and holding it into a loopwhile simultaneously retracting the pointed end 42 upwardly from thefabric until the leg portion 46 of the shuttle member contacts theneedle member 16 or, in cases where the extremities of the slot 30 actas stoppers, until screw 54 engages the extremity 30b of the slot. Thisreciprocating movement is repeated thereby progressing the hookingoperation.

Although the invention has been described above in relation to aspecific form of the invention, it will be evident to the man skilled inthe art that it may be refined and modified in various ways. It istherefore wished to have it understood that the present invention is notlim ited in interpretation except by the terms of the following claims.

1 claim:

1. A hooking needle comprising: an elongated bar having a handleattached at one end thereof; a needle member fixed to the oppositeforward end of said bar; said needle member defining an open-endedenclosure having a yarn-receiving passage and a looper-receiving passageextending longitudinally therethrough, said needle member including afabric-penetrating portion frontwardly extending in the longitudinalaxis of said bar; a shuttle member mounted to said bar for reciprocatingmovement thereon between said handle and said needle member; anelongated looper member having one end attached to said shuttle memberand the opposite forward end slidably received in said looperreceivingpassage of said needle member; a presser member slidably mounted to saidelongated bar and extending longitudinally thereof, said presser memberhaving a forward portion adapted to rest against the fabric to behooked; and means for adjusting the relative position of said pressermember to said bar and to said shuttle member to thereby vary therelative position of said forward end of said presser member to saidforward end of said looper member whereby the penetration of the yarn inthe fabric may be varied, including a coupling member in abuttingengagement with said presser member adjacent the rear end thereof; andreleasable fastening means for fixing said coupling member to said rearportion of said presser member.

2. A hooking needle as defined in claim 1 wherein said coupling membersurrounds a portion of said presser member adjacent the rear end thereofand a portion of said elongated bar.

3. A hooking needle as defined in claim 1 wherein said elongated barincludes an elongated slot disposed in an intermediate portion of saidbar between said handle and said needle member; said fastening meansincluding a screw having its treaded end extending through said slot,the opposite ends of said slot providing for the reciprocating movementof said screw in said slot.

4. A hooking needle as defined in claim 1 wherein said open-endedenclosure consists of a pair of sidewalls having lower ends fixedlyattached to side edges of said forward end of said elongated bar.

5. A hooking needle as defined in claim 4 wherein the lower ends of saidsidewalls are welded to said side edges of said elongated bar.

6. A hooking needle as defined in claim 1 wherein said shuttle memberincludes a rear leg portion and a front leg portion inter-connected byan intermediate portion extending partially over said bar; said rear legportion having an aperture therethrough to receive said elongated bar;said front leg portion being longer than said rear leg portion andhaving therethrough an aperture to receive said presser member, said barand said looper member.

7. A hooking needle as defined in claim 6 further comprising releasefastening means for attaching said one end of said looper member to saidshuttle member. l =l

1. A hooking needle comprising: an elongated bar having a handleattached at one end thereof; a needle member fixed to the oppositeforward end of said bar; said needle member defining an open-endedenclosure having a yarn-receiving passage and a looper-receiving passageextending longitudinally therethrough, said needle member including afabric-penetrating portion frontwardly extending in the longitudinalaxis of said bar; a shuttle member mounted to said bar for reciprocatingmovement thereon between said handle and said needle member; anelongated looper member having one end attached to said shuttle memberand the opposite forward end slidably received in said looperreceivingpassage of said needle member; a presser member slidably mounted to saidelongated bar and extending longitudinally thereof, said presser memberhaving a forward portion adapted to rest against the fabric to behooked; and means for adjusting the relative position of said pressermember to said bar and to said shuttle member to thereby vary therelative position of said forward end of said presser member to saidforward end of said looper member whereby the penetration of the yarn inthe fabric may be varied, including a coupling member in abuttingengagement with said presser member adjacent the rear end thereof; andreleasable fastening means for fixing said coupling member to said rearportion of said presser member.
 2. A hooking needle as defined in claim1 wherein said coupling member surrounds a portion of said pressermember adjacent the rear end thereof and a portion of said elongatedbar.
 3. A hooking needle as defined in claim 1 wherein said elongatedbar includes an elongated slot disposed in an intermediate portion ofsaid bar between said handle and said needle member; said fasteningmeans including a screw having its treaded end extending through saidslot, the opposite ends of said slot providing for the reciprocatingmovement of said screw in said slot.
 4. A hooking needle as defined inclaim 1 wherein said open-ended enclosure consists of a pair ofsidewalls having lower ends fixedly attached to side edges of saidforward end of said elongated bar.
 5. A hooking needle as defined inclaim 4 wherein the lower ends of said sidewalls are welded to said sideedges of said elongated bar.
 6. A hooking needle as defined in claim 1wherein said shuttle member includes a rear leg portion and a front legportion inter-connected by an intermediate portion extending partiallyover said bar; said rear leg portion having an aperture therethrough toreceive said elongated bar; said front leg portion being longer thansaid rear leg portion and having therethrough an aperture to receivesaid presser member, said bar and said looper member.
 7. A hookingneedle as defined in claim 6 further comprising release fastening meansfor attaching said one end of said looper member to said shuttle member.